COLLEGE PARK, Md. — Gainesville High graduate and former University of Georgia athletic director Damon Evans has been named interim athletic director at Maryland.

Maryland athletic director Kevin Anderson is taking a six-month sabbatical. Anderson made the announcement Monday in a statement on the school’s website , saying he will be on a “professional development sabbatical.”

Evans, the executive director, chief financial officer and chief operating officer of the athletics department, will fill in for Anderson during his absence.

Anderson said the university granted him an opportunity to retain his post as athletic director while engaging in “various projects focusing on leadership development.”

Evans joined the university in 2014. Since then, he has overseen the day-to-day operations of the athletic department, its finances and compliance functions along with other key areas. Evans will report directly to university President Wallace D. Loh.